85 hp evinrude hydro shift all sorts of problems !

[B-Dozer]

I just bought a 1972 glastron trihull with a 85 hp evinrude with hydro electric shift. i was told the the previous owner that the motor ran but was hard to start . I got the boat home and tried to start it and the starter would barely turn the motor over so i removed the spark plugs and it turned over pretty well but the prop was moving at the same time. The neutral button was pushed down and the prop still turned . so i started to play with the shift buttons and got the same results no matter what i did . I noticed a wire running from the reverse shift switch to a toggle on the counsel. i assume the previous owner did this because the switch was not working. my question is did i damage the lower unit by trying to start the motor in forward and reverse at the same time ? and is this the reason the starter would hardly turn the motor over ? thanks for any help you can give me ?